Sample Income and Expenses Worksheet

Knowing what expenses are flexible and what expenses are fixed is the first step to successfully managing your personal finances. This income and expense worksheet will help you to decide where you can be flexible each month.

How to Use the Income and Expenses Worksheet

Recording Your Income:

1. Record your income in the left column. As you can see from the example below, there are spaces on your worksheet for other incomes sources that might fit your personal situation, such as alimony, child support, and social security.
   
   
• As you record your income, be sure to consider whether income sources are continuous or whether they might stop in the near future.  For example, if you get unemployment benefits, keep in mind when you will stop receiving these benefits.
  
  
• You also might want to make adjustments for income you receive on a yearly or quarterly basis, such as tax refunds or bonus checks.

2. Next, calculate your total income by adding the numbers in the left column. Record this number in the space next to “Total Income” on the bottom of the left hand side of the page.  This number represents the amount of income you earn in a month.

Recording Monthly Expenses

1. Fixed expenses
   Next, list your monthly expenses in the right-hand column.  Begin by listing your fixed expenses.  Fixed expenses are items you have little or no control over.  You will pay a fixed amount for these expenses each month.  See the example below for some examples of fixed expenses.
   
   
2. Agreed expenses
   The next group of expenses you will record on the worksheet are expenses that you have some control over before the initial agreement.  They become fixed expenses after you have signed a contract.  You should shop for the best value before committing to the payments.  See the example below for some examples of expenses you can control before agreeing to make payments.
   
   
3. Flexible expenses
   The next group of expenses you will record on the worksheet are flexible expenses. Flexible expenses are expenses that you can control.
   
   
• When thinking about flexible expenses, think about what you need and what you want. This will help you to control your spending in this category.  What are some ways that you could control the costs of these expenses?
  
  
• Also, make sure to pay yourself first. Set aside money from each paycheck and put it towards your savings. You will notice in the example below that “savings” is listed as an expense.
  
  
4. See the example below for other examples of flexible expenses.  Also, you can use the Daily Spending Diary (see “Budgeting Tools” section) to get an idea of how to control your flexible spending.

Monthly Income and Expenses Worksheet